This “whip smart” woman dedicated her entire life to teaching and instilling a lot of important things into the minds of young people. From her teaching days to her mothering days, to now her grandmothering days, Kathleen Wixted has made education a priority in her life.
The number one thing in Kathleen’s life, however, is family. While always teaching her family is a big part of how she has shown her love to them, there are so many other things that have made her the wonderful matriarch to sons Patrick and Doug, and daughter Christine, that she is.
“She means everything to me,” Patrick said. “I think especially now that I’m a parent, just instilling values and care and thoughtfulness into our daily lives. How we conduct ourselves at home; with people we meet; in sports; at work. Also just learning and knowing there’s things out there to experience. Never stop learning or experiencing things. Through entertainment; books; school; anything like that.”
Care, compassion and dedication make up who Kathleen is, as does knowledge and cleverness. She is always finding ways to incorporate life lessons into everyday life, and she has always done a great job of that.
She has also always done a great job of being a top-notch grandmother. Ever since Daniel, Christine’s son, was born, Kathleen had a total shift of balance in her life, putting her grandmother duties above all else. And now she does the same for Doug’s sons, Caleb and Sam, and Patrick’s kids, Reese and Max.
“She teaches them the importance of academics, education and learning,” Doug said. “One of my sons said once, ‘[Someone] is the smartest person I know… except for Grandma.’ They identify that characteristic with her. She’s instilling that in them. She’s always making time to spend time with them in activities related to that. She loves buying them stuff and sending them things. Really all her grandkids just adore her. It’s great to have such a grandmother presence.”
Kathleen is constantly buying her grandbabies puzzles and supporting their interests that include art, theatre, music and sports. Her loving and nurturing nature always takes precedence, as she is a pillar of support for all five grandchildren.
When she was working in the school system, Kathleen played a huge part in many students’ lives as well. Whether she was serving as an assistant, a teacher or an administrator, whatever the role she played, she put the students first.
“Her students loved her,” Patrick said. “Students and teachers loved her. Education was not just her job, but a big part of her life. Experiencing things; you learn about life. That’s another important thing to think about.”
In many ways, Kathleen was a very hands-on teacher. She did not just teach out of a textbook, but used experiences and adventures as a way of opening the eyes of young people.
She did so on the homefront as well, as every place they lived Kathleen ensured her kids were getting out and exploring. She would take them to sporting events and on excursions, and they know they are all better off because of this.
They also know all the values she instilled in them have helped shape them into the people they are today.
“I learned from her the golden rule,” Doug said. “Treat everyone as you would like to be treated. To lead with kindness. The importance of being kind to people. The value and importance of humor and fun. Humor and having a good laugh throughout life; family in general.”
The Wixted kids know how important family is, not only because their mother taught that to them, but because she showed that to them. She has always been close with her family members, as that is super important to her.
“She is best friends with her sister,” Patrick said. “She’s a great sister. She’s a great wife. She’s there for my dad. She’s an Army wife and a special education teacher. Saying that out loud just reinforces who she is. Just care and thoughtfulness for her children and grandchildren. How she goes about life and the way she treats people.”
Kathleen treats people with selflessness and kindness, and she is the best life partner to her husband, Mike.
“She is a military wife,” Doug said. “In that regard, she played more of a traditional role of being the leader of the household and being a stable presence. From our perspective, she is selfless and willing to make sacrifices for the good of the family. In terms of the marriage specifically, she is more of the creative one. It’s been admirable as we’ve started our own family. Their marriage has lasted. We just celebrated their 50th recently. From our lens, most of what we’ve seen is family oriented; why we see family as so important.”
Everything Christine, Doug and Patrick are is directly related to who their mother is. Kathleen has taught them everything they need to know about family and life in general, and she has always been their true beacon.
“Thank you for being the best person to look up to growing up and teaching us so many things and giving yourself to us.” – Patrick
“I really hope she does feel a sense of pride as far as her sphere of influence in what she’s instilled in her family. She’s just been a wonderful mom, and now grandma, to a family who has spread that impact wide, and I think she should be really proud of it.” – Doug
“The work of a mother is hard, too often unheralded, work. Please know that it is worth it then, now and forever.” – Christine
